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Saturday, July 19, 2008

Video response to Andrew Halcro's allegations

Here is my full video response to Andrew Halcro's salacious allegations against Gov. Palin. Part 1 is an introduction to the situation, while Part 2 details several key aspects of the case. I am on an extreme time crunch at the moment, so I will have to post all of my supporting documentation this afternoon. However, you can find all of the documents cited at KTVA.com (yellow box on the sidebar).

1. If Palin WAS out to get back at Wooten...my God, she has been governor for 2 years now...what took her so long?? Is she that dense about a governor's power that she couldn't get it done by NOW? And if she is SO RUTHLESS in the way she governs...WHY is Wooten still working as a Trooper? The scenario of her critics just doesn't jive.

2. If Wooten's "children have endured inexcusable stress at the hands of the governor and her family", as Halcro's article states, then WHY did WOOTEN taser his own 10year old step-son (documented) and on Sunday refuse "to obey a court order after visitation with his children, he doesn't have full custody of the kids. He had visitation. He refused to turn the kids over. One of his sergeants had to call him and tell him, 'Trooper Wooten you have to follow the court order. You have to give the kids back.' He did that with this threat. He said, 'Get ready for the show. I'm going to bring you down.'" Sounds to me like WOOTEN is the one giving "inexcusable stress" to his kids...NOT the Palins. Read this transcript Sarah gave BEFORE she was governor about Mike's rage...it's harrowing:

3. Let's face it, Moneghan was in the tank for the Public Safety Employees Association...the union for the Troopers. When the HEAD of a company is basically a pawn of the union...do you think some wasteful spending might occur? Damn right!One issue is PAID FOR time that was BEYOND the troopers shift. "One of the accusations from the union: the hours some troopers put in NOT during their shift might not get paid." Think there is a possiblity of some "gaming" the system to rake in overtime pay? I do. Now.."the word from command is that there will be closer scrutiny of how these call outs will be used, and some people may be called out, and not be paid for it." Good!!

4. Lastly, the whole issue of Alaskan's safety and security in such a vast rural state...it's perplexing to see, if Moneghan was doing such a good job, then WHY(according to the union) is Alaska "number one in forcible rape, number three in aggravated assault, number 15 in car theft and number 22 in murder and manslaughter". If you see that you might wonder WHY Palin wants to cut their budget?.. Well, basically to CUT THE FAT and be able to hire MORE TROOPERS on the ground! ""We need between 150 to 200 more troopers to make Alaska safe," said Cyr.

The Palin Admininistration does not dispute the numbers.

"The governor is horrified at the statistics and is focusing on the goals of recruiting more qualified troopers to provide safety for our state," said Leighow."

The troopers union says Monegan had improved morale from the start. So why fire him?"

BECAUSE HE WAS IN YOUR POCKET and that's NOT WHERE HE BELONGED!!!

Trooper officials say the budget was cut, but they were still able to do their job and keep people safe.

"It didn't mean that we lost any officers," said Holloway, "It meant that we had to cut back in different places."

Yeah...like the FAT in your system!

(The MORE I hear about this the MORE I think Sarah would make a great VP...or even President some day!)

"On the other hand, Monegan served as Anchorage police chief under Mayor Mark Begich and Begich asked him to leave too. Mayor Begich is a pragmatic, results-oriented manager, so maybe there are legitimate performance issues with Monegan's tenure."

The safety of our First Families should be of the utmost importance--in my lifetime, there has been the assassination of President Kennedy and his brother, Bobby; Martin Luther King, Jr.; and the attempt on President Reagan, which also injured 3 others.

I was a resident of Alaska when 2 tragic high profile cases occurred evolving around the lives of public safety officers. One was the Godfrey incident occurring on 8-3-2002 in Eagle River and the Ivanoff incident occurring on 8-11-2003 in Nome. The Godfrey case resulted in improving the 9-1-1 System locator map. The Ivanoff case resulted in the Sonya Ivanoff Act which Governor Palin signed into law in Juneau on 4-27-2007. Sonya's parents and siblings were present at the signing and were presented with pens used during the bill signing ceremony.

Many lives were affected with grief, and always will be, because emotions escalated into violence.

Governor Palin and her family have my full support and prayers, and I would be very grateful to have her as our next Vice President.--a former Alaskan.

To Venice, I would say, why does Barack Obama deserve to be president? He hasn't really done anything more than she has, arguably less. But a lot of people are backing him at this point. I don't know that anybody DESERVES to be president or vice president. It's more like, here are our choices, who do we prefer. Personally, I think being a woman should put her on the ticket, given that there is no clear front runner. Why? Because the Republican party needs to shed it's good old boy, cronyism image. You may think that's a shallow argument. But, consider this. There is no real clear front runner. Every possibilty has his/her pros and cons and it's much like comparing apples, oranges, walnuts, and cherry pie. With no clear front runner, the choice should be someone who can fundamentally improve the perception of the party. I think Gov. Palin does that. She's very home towny, working American, and the total opposite of old rich white guys in dark suits and white shirts in a back room hashing out deals under the table. Face it. The image of Republicans for a lot of Americans leans pretty hard toward the Dick Cheney type of guy. Republicans are in bad need of a fresh face. That, I feel, is why Obama is ahead at this point. Despite the fact that McCain is unquestionably more qualified, Obama is a fresh face. America wants a fresh face. That's why I feel she is a good choice for John McCain.dr. vicki

History repeats itself--same plot, different time. As Mayor of Wasilla, Alaska, Sarah dismissed the cheif of police. Of course, this incited the political enemies and "the battle" began, outraging the local paper, the Frontiersman. But, Sarah with the qualities that we so admire (leadership, integrity, courage) prevailed.

I look forward to the future with the hope that Sarah will be our next Vice President.--a former Alaskan.

Sarah Palin's has had more actual accomplishment, experience and qualification than Barack Obama TIMES TEN, really more than times 10! (Admittedly, Barack Obama sets the bar so low that my plumber has more qualification than Obama, and I'm absolutely not kidding. What the HELL has that guy, Obama, EVER done, for anyone, or anything, beyond self-promotion -- community activist on the South Side of Chicago -- holy moly!!!

While Palin would be Veep, and Obama would be Pres, stand them two up againts each other in a debate! Boy would I pay a lot to see that!

And another thing occurred to me about this whole Monegan incident. With a President Palin we wouldn't have another run-away State Department making its own policy and undermining the President. Palin would not put up with that!

Obama was just on the evening news here with fancy words of nothing. Probably can expect a correction tomorrow.

One lady is excited about "change", but she said she didn't understand what Obama's change is about. A gentleman replied to her "that's easy. It is what is left of your paycheck after he gets through paying for his bigger and better government".

TedI understand your enthusiasm for Gov. Palin. I'm pretty pumped myself. But I think, from a factual point of view, it is very hard to compare who has "done more" between most candidates. Especially if they have different roles. Obama was a state senator for several years and then a federal senator for a couple of years. Palin was a mayor and then a governor. Then when you say, well, who has accomplished more you must also consider one was a republican and one was a democrat. They have very different goals. I personally think she has shown more grit and more integrity than Obama, but empirically I think it's very difficult to say one has accomplished more than the other.dr. vicki

Thanks, Adam, for your hard work and really expert narrative. You are very good at presenting complicated material in an easily understandable manner. I hope you find a job in Washington, D.C., and help McCain-Palin bring some order to that swamp!

"Palin unveils new public safety plan Fort Mills Times, SC - 12 minutes agoSarah Palin on Saturday identified her "new direction" for the Department of Public Safety. In a press release, Palin said she will direct Public Safety ..."

So, this should put an end to the Monegan matter -- Sarah Palin coming out of it with, what is, a net plus, and looking better tnan ever!!!

I just wish Senator McCain would name Palin already so the real fun could begin!!! (maybe after next week's Alaska legslature vote moving forward on Palin's natural gas pipeline plan)

By the way, Adam Brinkley does merit an important position on Palin's staff when she becomes Veep, albeit with Adam's demonstrated talents he can probably garner higher pay elsewhere and I don't think that is/was his primary motivating factor here!

anonymous, if you are being serious, then you should be aware that both Palin AND McCain especially do share the same campaign theme against corruption, including GOP corruption, and both against GOP excessive spending. You couldn't find two GOP politicians any closer.

Insofar as McCain losing "big time", first of all, Palin would definitely more than reverse any trend in that direction and, secondly, how can Obama win big time when he's essentially tied in the polls at this time with McCain, whereas Dukakis, Carter, and other Dems were WELL AHEAD of the GOP Presidential candidate at this stage and went on to lose!!!

What timing. This is the most critical time for VP vetting--and then this has to come about. I checked KTUU just now and it seems this story has legs and will keep on going. I don't know if this will sink Sarah, but a political scandal is not what McCain needs right now and it seems that is what she's got. She was just getting going.

Sarah first campaigned for public office in 1992 when she was 28 years old. She and Todd campaigned door-to-door pulling a wagon with 4-year-old son Track and 2-year- old daughter Bristol on board. She served 2 terms as city council woman and 2 terms as Mayor of Wasilla.

To venice--The only "entitlement" Palin, me, or anyone has is to life and liberty. Any government that can "give" you anything can also take everything. That is why as conservatives we believe in limiting the role of government--not expanding it or giving away "entitlements" as the Democrats have done while taking money out our pockets. If you mean "qualified" then Gov. Palin also fits that definition by past performance, firm commitment to principle, as well as removing corrupt and ineffective officials for which she should be commended no criticized.

The FBI is investigating the corrupt up there in Alaska and Sarah has stated that she will charge the corrupt with state violations after the Department of Justice finishes its investigations.Some locals have suggested that one whole section of a correctional facility is made available for them.

So, Sarah is a threat to some of the "good old club".--a former Alaskan.

ir-mn, I think you'll see the only "legs" to this story, if in fact there remain any, are actually gonna benefit Palin! (a woman w/cajones is Presidential; her detractors appearing petty)

In any event, Bud Knox commented to KTUU Saturday evening:

"I TALKED TO WALT [MONEGAN] TODAY AT THE POLICE PICNIC. HE IS DOING GOOD. THIS MEDIA IS BEATING A DEAD HORSE. ENOUGH OF THIS CRAP. THE END"

And ir-mn, since you bring up "timing", I wouldn't be surprised if Palin taking action right now vis a vis the Dept. of Public Safety and/or Monegan etc. relates specifically to that fact of addressing this prior to her being named McCain's Veep which may be imminent.

ir-mn: This helps Palin, and I'll tell you why. She's a LEADER. The voters have consistently chosen Governors for POTUS for this reason. It would've been easier for Palin to do nothing, perhaps trying to avoid any controversy which could hurt her VP chances.

McCain has never given the impression he'll be a two-term president. I think he wants to get in there, fix what he thinks needs fixing, then retire to Arizon. Think about it like this, if he did run again in 4 years, he'd be 75 years old. You think the age stigma is bad now? Wait till then.

And I have to agree with ted on the polling issue. Barack Obama SHOULD be about 10-15 points ahead of McCain right now. Reason being, Republicans always get the bigger bump coming out of the convention. Plus, with ours being closer to election day (8 weeks before), we don't have to make it stick as long. You know I saw a story about how Democrats are worried that Obama is only a few points up on McCain, when the generic ballot question has Dems with a 12 point edge. What does that tell you, even members of his own party don't trust him.

On the experience side, Sarah has more executive experience in her little pinkie than Barack Obama AND John McCain combined. Theres a reason every president since Carter has been a Governor, people value that executive experience. Adding Palin to the ticket will only enhance the experience mantra McCain is running on. Obama has to pick a governor as well, otherwise, the election won't be close at all.

I'm watching CNN Sunday Morning and I just saw something that really disturbed me. They were covering Obama's trip to the middle east and showed him entering a room full of troops in kuwait and they were talking about the reception they gave him. It was pretty loud, and I must admit I was surprised....

But then the camera panned into the crowd, and guess what...every soldier, I mean EVERY single soldier was either black or latino. They cheered for the Democratic nominee for President...I'm stunned. In fact, in every scene they showed of him in Kuwait and Afghanistan, not one non-african american or latino was shown shaking his hand. In other words, no white people.

I was skeptical of the stories about obama being the media's candidate, but not anymore. It's glaringly obvious, they'll do anything to increase Obama's popularity. It really is sickening.

I don't mean to be the devil's advocate here, gang, but I think the argument of executive experience doesn't go very far with the average voter. Especially where vp is concerned. VP is about personality. It's how well she will play out campaigning for McCain and how much attention she would garner from the press (in my opinion a lot.) I think the key factor in the experience issue is not necessarily that she has more than Obama, the key is it would be a hard sell to say she has less. The MSM would like to say, considering McCain's age, she'd have to be able to step in and take over. But considering Obama's thin resume, that would be a hard argument to make, especially since it is a hypothetical argument. How could you sell, "Don't vote for McCain, he's old and he's picked a young green vp" when Obama is every bit as green as she is. Plus he's losing traction on his argument of "judgment" since the surge has turned the corner in Iraq.dr. vicki

If that article is true, it could be a double edged sword. One, it's confirmation that McCain's associates are talking about her. But while them saying she might not be ready to be President could be bad, she can easily say, "That's why I didn't run for President." I always thought the whole "not ready" thing shouldn't apply to VP's. Quayle wasn't ready, and they won. Cheney was in worse shape health wise than Bush, yet they picked him.

I think now that we pretty much know she has been/is being vetted, I'm sure she's been asked that question and probably gave them a damn good answer.

TC-You are correct. The argument that one is not ready is awfully subjective-especially for the #2 spot. Consider that Teddy Roosevelt and Harry Truman had less executive experience than Palin or Jindal. The part of the NYT article where Mac's camp is downplaying Palin as a veep is countertintuitive. It is bad form to say "by all means she is a candidate." Whether she gets picked or not she is being considered per many published articles. I honestly just do not think Mac has made up his mind. Veep picks are frequently made on the eve of convention mostly for short term gains rather than a long term direction for the party. This is what scares me about the Romney choice.

Whether it is a good thing or not I tend to put great emphasis in what I read in the WSJ and NYT though they often contrast the great opinion of what you find in blogs such as this one. Like it or not the opinion of elites that you read in their pages frequently becomes reality. Palin has not had one bad article that I have seen in these publications. They may have their bias towards overtly fiscal types such as Romney or Portman, yet, they recognize the rising abilities of Palin, Jindal, Cantor, and other "new faces" that are so popular in blogs.

big-rob 68, if you are correct that McCain has really not made up his mind on Veep, and/or, further, that he has not already decided on Palin, this is indeed scary because it would mean that McCain totally lacks mental capacity for the job as President. I have to believe that he DOES have mental capacity and I have to believe he has already decided on Palin.

No I'm not trying to be provocative or funny. I am being totally truthful. There is no other selection that comes remotely close to Palin as the best pick both for McCain to win and McCain to govern. Bottom line, if he has not already landed on Palin, McCain lacks full mental capacity. Since I have to beleve McCain IS smart enough to be President, I'm saying he already has decided on Palin as his Veep.

And insofar as the NYT, the NYT obviously wants McCain to lose the general election. Hence, anything they write is with that aim, SO OF COURSE THE NYT WILL DOWNPLAY PALIN AS MUCH AS IT CAN -- hoping and/or trying to make it seem the Veepship is going to a losing choice for McCain, like Romney or Pawlenty!

Point taken on the family issues. Franklin Pierce never recovered from the death of child, for example. There are, however, other presidents who had private difficulties and were able to handle the public pressure. William McKinley had a wife who was epileptic and buried two children prior to his presidency. Lincoln also had death within his family and his wife was barely emotionally stable. The point is not whether someone has a special needs child at home, normal children, or an unmarried daughter who may or may not be president. (by the way is a sexist criticism) The point is whether a VP is emotionally, intellectually, and physically tough enough to tackle the top job. Do they have a strong marriage to handle the same real world problems that other Americans share and has their past record demonstrate the ability to execute their duties successfully? By all accounts, the answer is yes.

anonymous, of course McCain can take time if he elects to wait before making an announcement on Palin.

I'm only saying, he must have already DECIDED that he will (albeit maybe at some future time) name Palin, and if he has not already so decided, he lacks mental capacity and judgment to be President (again, which I don't think is the case).

Moreover, I'm saying, again, assuming McCain is smart enough to be President, he's already decided to name Palin (albeit announced at some future time) regardless of who Obama names as Veep.

anonymous, what's wrong with Todd Palin discussing Trooper Wooten with Monegan if Todd had a genuine safety and security concern for Sarah and Palin family over Wooten.

Palins' would be more than negligent and remiss had they said nothing, and Wooten remained a real threat. After all, Wooten allegedly threatened to the Palins' to kill Sarah Palin's father and bring down the Palin family!

As Sarah Palin reiterated, she does not get involved in disciplinary and/or personnel matters of the Dept. of Public Safety. No Palin ever relayed Wooten be fired. They did, however, discreetly, appropriately and carefull express their safety and security concerns to Monegan.

Actually, if Palin is made VP and they win, Parnell probably won't be the next governor. He's all but assured of beating Don Young in the GOP primary, and if he does that, he's a shoe in to be AK's next Congressman. Now if that happens, the governership falls to the Attorney General, Talis Colberg. Luckily, he's a Palin appointee, so the people would probably warm up to him nicely.